This chapter is gonna play out a little bit differently to the other ones. You'll get what I mean instantly. I'm curious to see how well this chapter will be taken. Anyway, enjoy!

CHAPTER 9: STYX AND STONES, DIVINITY BONES (1)

Hades was never known to have a cheerful disposition. In fact, some would claim he was quite a serious character. A dark and grim person who was always serious about his work, even when that entailed reaping the souls of the damned. This wasn't entirely true (well, the part about the souls of the damned was), he was just tired, that's all. Whenever things were going wrong and he was needed, he was hailed as a hero, a champion even, by his siblings. But as soon as the trouble passed, who got all the glory? Who was hailed as the saviour of the gods? His younger brother Zeus, that was who.

Not that he cared anyway. Running Olympus did not look like a fun pastime. Not enough pay for all the responsibility. Plus, dealing with those who are rebellious. At least with the undead, he knew that he had complete and total fealty. He literally owned all of their souls. Contracts signed in their own blood and everything.

He observed some of those very same denizens of the underworld. Two lines of soldiers were stood, leading towards the door at the opposite end of his throne room. In recent years, he had acquired a lot of soldiers who used guns. It was very strange to get used to their new way of fighting, but the discipline hadn't changed. Even in death, it seemed the rigour and training had been hammered into their bones.

This was one of his very rare moments of peace and quiet. He didn't have to sort through the underworld's increasing space problem, and his resources were being budgeted properly. There was still the pesky little problem of monsters and the dead escaping from the underworld, though there have always been one or two breakouts. Like that door Orpheus left open. Hades still hadn't found a way to seal it, or even where it was for that matter. Besides, it kept the heroes on their toes. They were all spoilt brats that didn't know true suffering. There were probably mortals who had more backbone.

He stood up from his bone throne as he lamented the loss of courage in the modern heroes. He might as well take a walk, enjoy what little air there was to breathe. Maybe visit the Fields of Punishment? It had been a while since he had shown his face in hell anyway, and he heard that there were some rare herbs that only grew there. Perhaps they would make a somewhat palatable meal for once if Nico ever decided to stop by. Maybe for permanent residence.

It was when his foot left the throne room and he started admiring the apocalyptic artwork on the walls that he began to feel a tugging in his gut. The feeling of somebody calling upon his dark powers. This wasn't unusual. Once in a while, there was a human that just so happened to stumble upon an ancient tome that taught them how to summon the spirit of death. That wasn't a problem, just a mild inconvenience. He would send out an avatar and find some way to "bless" them violently for rudely interrupting his break. But this was different.

He could feel his whole body being drawn towards it, his very being and essence. It was like somebody was calling the very spirit of death itself. He didn't have long. He clutched his chest in pain, letting out a roar as he was engulfed in black flames, the world around him vanishing.

When he came to, he was standing atop an enormous skyscraper. The air was chilly, and there was more light from the buildings and street below than there was from the moon and stars above. Not that there were many of those. He recognised those streets. He was looking down at the streets of Las Vegas, and from the top of the tallest building in sin city, The Palazzo hotel and casino.

What unnatural force of nature would dare to pull the lord of the dead from his own home? He felt a body tackle him from behind, nearly sending him careening off the side of the building.

"Hiya Hades!" a female voice shrieked into his ear before he could react and blast the intruder off of him. He let out a sigh, trying his best to pry the woman's fingers off of his neck. He should have known it would be her. Had that been anybody else, they would already be joining his undead minions in Tartarus.

"Oh, it's just you," he mumbled as he got one hand off, only to find it reattach itself with twice the vigour.

"Oh come on, you know you missed me!" He could feel the big smile coming off of her face, and he felt more irritated the longer it stayed there. Finally, with a bit of an effort, he managed to get her off and turned around to face her.

He was staring at a young woman with large frizzy hair and golden brown skin. She was dressed in a flowing dress and platform shoes. The dress seemed to change colours right before his eyes. One moment it was a bright red, the next, it was yellow, already in the process of turning peach. Bone necklaces hung off of her neck, with a skull carved from silver in the centre. Her eyes were the radiant gold of the sun itself, and her smile was warm to look at. Overall, her presence irritated him.

"What do you want, Oya?" he asked, clearly not amused at her kidnapping trick.

"Oh come on, what if I'm just here to say hi?" she asked. "After all, we're basically partners, aren't we?"

"More like rivals. You better not have called me for something small and insignificant." She folded her arms and glowered at him.

"Really, you think that I, the deity of the River Niger, powerful and awe – inspiring Orisha of thunder and lightning, master of hurricanes, clairvoyant spirit of death and rebirth, would cross not one, but two continents, just to say hello?"

"The last time you summoned me was to complain about your husband, Shango. And the time before that was to take a visit to a carnival. And many times before that, you wished to meet that insatiable demigod, Jimi Hendrix, and hoped that I would be able to arrange it. And the time before that…."

"Okay, okay, I get the idea. Sheesh, way to be a buzzkill…." She sauntered over to the edge of the building, clutching the railing as she peered over the edge to observe the sea of lights below her. Hades went over to join her, joining his gaze with her own. "But man, I can never get enough of the view here. Sin city looks as pretty as a promise, with all the funny little mortals running around thinking they own the place. They don't even know that their next door neighbour is the Lord of the Dead!"

"If you're interrupting my break just to admire what I already own, then I might as well go back now." Hades turned around when he felt a hand grab his arm, accompanied by the sound of bangles clanging together as it did so. They looked like they were made of bones, and there was even a human molar among them.

"Wait! I'm not just here to waste your time! I promise! Styx and everything, or whatever weird oaths you guys make!" Hades rolled his eyes. Even his tolerance of her had a limit. It was almost unfair that somebody so powerful had such an enthusiastic personality.

"Okay then, why have you called me?"

"Well, it's got to do with those holes to the underworld…."

"Oh yes, thanks for enlightening me about something I already know." Now it was Oya's turn to get angry, the sound of thunder rumbling overhead.

"Just listen for a second! You think it's easy crossing into Greek borders without getting spotted? I'm telling you this because it's important, and you're the only one here I can trust. So just let me finish, alright?" Hades relented with an exhausted sigh. If it was working Oya up so much, then he at least had a duty to listen as a fellow patron of death, at least if it would help to calm her down.

"Okay, portals in and out of the underworld. Not too strange. What about it?"

"Well, I've been trying to trace them. They aren't just more frequent than normal, they're more… focussed. Like, normally there's a couple of points where darkness can leak from, like Yomotsu Hirasaka in Japan, or your own door under the DOA recording studios. Sure, there's a few small time haunted locations and stuff, but nothing major, but now there's big areas that are just opening up with all kinds of nasties. Hauntings and monster sightings galore."

"Undead everywhere. Sounds like a paradise for Nico," Hades said with a smirk.

"Most people would disagree, and for good reason too. These spots are imbalanced. Whatever natural sources of magic that were in the area have been drained. Dozmary Pool in Cornwall is looking a heck of a lot less magical, with ghosts frequently visiting our dear friend the ghost of Tregeagle. The Devil's Gate in Wyoming is looking a little bit more rusty too. Not to mention the wailing of the Egyptians in the Red Sea has gotten especially loud in recent years. Heck, now we're on the topic of Egypt, last time I went there, there were a lot more people registering with unnatural ESP abilities. Imagine humans that can use spiritual powers on their own. That's the power of a Stand, and there's a lot more Stand users there. It's not good news."

"Okay, I'm still not seeing your point."

"My point, is that for all of this to happen, the magic sources that were in those areas had to have gone missing. I tossed around a few drachmas and a wayward hex bag in the right places, and I've been able to trace a lot of them. Excalibur was plucked from Avalon right through the Dozmary Pool, part of the railing in the Wyoming Devil's Trap is gone too. Whatever treasures left over from the Pharaoh have been stolen from the Red Sea, just for good measure. Stuff is being filched, and when it is, they leave a gap… a kind of vacuum, you could say. And that vacuum attracts spirits and ghouls to fill it. It can even suck them out from across worlds, punching holes in the underworld to let them out."

Hades thought about it for a bit. It was fine for a few things to go missing, but who was capable of stealing Excalibur? For that matter, who could see through the mist and find the treasures inside the Red Sea? As far as mortals are concerned, that event with Moses parting the Red Sea never happened, so nobody should be able to find all the Egyptian items that were lost beneath it. For all of this to happen at the same time? And across different cultures and theologies? It was too strange.

"Okay, I'm starting to see what you're getting at. But this isn't something you had to tell me about. I'm lord of the dead, not of discount trinkets. There's not much I can do here." Oya seemed to have become considerably less cheerful, like she was trying to mentally check off a list of things she needed to tell him, and until she said it all she would have to focus.

"I guess, but you know me. What I'm telling you now… this is child's play. Anybody could have traced that. My connections told me more."

Her connections never ceased to amaze Hades. Where the Olympians just barely held dominion over North America, this one lone goddess seemed to have linked with the entire world. What was her secret? He forced himself to focus as she continued speaking.

"There was one more missing magic spot that scared me. And that was around Mt Sinai, in Egypt. There was a really weird magical gulf right in the middle of it, like somebody took something big. Real big. Actually, while all of these ones were pretty recent, this magic spot has actually been missing for a long time now. I only recently discovered it."

"So it went missing before you started checking out these missing magic sources, right? So, how did you find it? If it's always been missing, then it would almost be a normal part of the environment, right?"

"Simple. I found out about it because I found out where that one went." Oya paused to catch her breath. She looked tired all of a sudden. It was then when Hades started to wonder when she'd been doing all of this work. If he remembered her mythos correctly, she had a lot of responsibility. The time it must have taken to do her job on top of this must have been phenomenal. But more importantly, he didn't like the way she paused like that. He looked her right in her eyes, trying not to look away from the intense light.

"Oya. What got taken from Mt Sinai?" Her eyes lit up briefly before the light started dying down. She bit her lip nervously.

"Have you ever heard of Samael's tablet? Or perhaps you know it better as 'The Ten Commandments' or something similar?"

"Of course. Everybody knows that-" He stopped mid – sentence. The gravity of the situation was finally starting to dawn on him. He could feel his muscles trembling involuntarily. He let go of the railing and tried to force himself to calm down and bury his fear, clenching his fists tightly. His palms stung as his nails dug into them, golden ichor dribbling out of the open wounds. "Where are the pieces?"

"You should really watch your domain better, Hades," she reprimanded. "They've been right under your nose for a while now. What do you think has been happening at those shady deals outside Paradise Ranch, drug deals? Go there, and that's where you'll find them."

"But how did they get here? And what happened to Mettatron? I thought he was watching them."

"Hell if I know, pun not intended, and maybe Mettatron's off duty, cashing in on his vacation days or something. Either way, he's not there now. And right now, the parts of the tablet are here in Nevada. They aren't live yet, but do we want to wait for that to change?" Hades shook his head. He wasn't ready for another war. It felt like they'd just gotten out of the last one. And this time, the gods wouldn't be allowed to sit idly by the side. He had to act fast, and stop the fight before it started.

"Oya… how did you find all of this out?" She winked at him as she stepped away from the railing.

"A lady's got to have some secrets in this cruel, misogynistic world." The wind started to pick up as she walked further away from the edge. Hades followed after, his mind consumed in thought.

"Are you going to return?" She shrugged her shoulders.

"Depends on how well the next few weeks play out. Anyway, you'll see more of me whether you like it or not. But at the end of the day, this isn't my domain. America is up to you guys. I can't help you from Nigeria or Cuba, just give you information."

"I wouldn't have it any other way. This is our fight now."

"Well, it will become all of our fights if you mess up." She looked up at the sky and held her hand up to it. The wind picked up to a horrendous gale, her dress billowing outwards like a parachute. Then, she seemed to have second thoughts, lowering her hand and turning back to face Hades. "Hey, Hades, I have a favour to ask you…."

"I knew you'd end up asking for something inconvenient," he moaned.

"Aw shucks, you know me too well."

"That's not a good thing!"

"Well… it's to do with my son."

"I thought you had only daughters? Around nine of them."

"No, not my godly kids… a demigod one." Hades's eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Orishas have demigod children? That's… surprising…."

"Hey, you can't judge me! Don't you have three kids of your own?"

"Yes, but I'm an Olympian, it's almost expected. I didn't expect that from an Orisha though."

"Shut up! It's not common, but it happens once in a while. The second Yoruba chief was a demigod even. Look, I've got a demigod kid, from this mortal I met in Malawi."

"Malawi? Where's-"

"Don't even!" He silenced himself before she could get mad. She sucked in her breath, and continued. "He's currently living here. I didn't direct him to Camp Jupiter or Half – Blood because he's not a western demigod, but things are getting more dangerous. He's going to need more than his own wits to survive in this world now. He needs training and guidance."

"He's not Greek. He's not even Roman. It's going to be hard to get him in."

"I know, I know I'm asking a lot, but I at least want him to have a fighting chance. I can't interfere with him. I haven't even seen him since he was a baby. Can you believe it? I can't just let him die like that. He needs to be around others with gifts… others like himself."

"If you need him trained, why not send him to Camp Jupiter? They are much more willing to accept any demigod as long as they can fight, and their training… it puts Camp Half – Blood to shame."

"I know, but then he'll be even more distant from me. You know that I'm not on as good terms with your… other half."

"It doesn't change the fact that he's going to struggle fitting in there."

"It's better than out here. You can make something up. Lie that he's somebody else's. I don't know, think of something." He almost expected her to say please at this point, something he never thought he would hear from a god, especially not Oya. She was serious about this. Once he took a look in her pleading eyes, even he felt some sympathy. Not much though. At the end of the day, it was only because he knew the favour would come in handy later. Oya was a good person to have on your side. That, and she was his friend. Sneaky and a king of liars, he at least had the honour not to betray those loyal to him.

"I'll see what I can do." A smile stretched across her face, her whole body seemingly vibrating with glee. She leaped on him, wrapping her arms around him in a crushing bear hug.

"Yes! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"Let go of me you insufferable woman! You're crushing me!" Obviously, she didn't listen, crushing him all the tighter. Hades was starting to wonder if he was going to regret the decision, or if Oya would ever let go, when she abruptly unhanded him, stepping backwards.

"Look after the kid. He's a real live wire, but he doesn't know what he's doing."

"That's not my job, I'm just there to get him in." She conceded, looking back up at the sky as she raised her arm.

"Keep in touch, I'd get bored without you around," she said.

"Don't get destroyed. I'd hate to deal with underworld traffic alone." She laughed as the wind seemed to tear her into shreds, her body vanishing into it. Her laughter was left behind, getting carried by along by the wind as it faded out.

Hades let out a sigh of relief. She was interesting to talk to, but she tired him out so much that it wasn't funny. He turned back to look out at the lights below him, and scanned the desert for sources of power. Sure enough, he could feel something. It was pretty faint: a few monsters, some exceptionally strong mortals, three demigod, and that mortal boy that Chiron told him about. There was fire, blood, and gunpowder. Lots of it. He had work to do.

And thus, the ball's rolling with that one. You wanna know what it was about the Ten Commandments that Hades has realised? Or how they even tie into this? A better question might be what exactly it was that Hades sensed down there. Only time, and the next chapter, will tell. So stay engaged for the next one on Monday!